Grant: Catalyst Grant: Health Effects of Vaping

The prevalence of vaping among young Canadians has dramatically increased in recent years. Adolescents who smoke cigarettes are more likely to start vaping, and the reverse is also true: vaping can lead to smoking. In former smokers, vaping can increase the risk for relapse back to smoking. While some young people report vaping to help them quit smoking, most continue to smoke resulting in dual use. The high rate of dual use suggests that vaping could prolong smoking and increase harms in young people who would have otherwise quit. Biomarker data show that dual users are exposed to higher levels of harmful chemicals known to cause tobacco-related illnesses compared to those who only smoke. Genetic variation influences cigarette smoking. People with gene variants that increase the rate at which nicotine is inactivated smoke more cigarettes, have a higher risk for tobacco-related illnesses, and are less likely to quit smoking, compared to people with slow nicotine metabolism. In two cohorts from Canada and England, we will study whether youth smokers with genetically faster nicotine metabolism have a higher risk for becoming a dual user and continuing smoking once they start vaping. In former smokers, we will test whether faster nicotine metabolism increases relapse back to smoking among vapers. While many young adults in Canada report vaping e-liquids that contain nicotine, e-liquids with cannabinoid extracts are also popular and we will investigate the effect of genetics on this choice. As a secondary goal, we will also test whether other genes, for example those that alter the response to nicotine and cannabis in the brain, also influence the risk for vaping. The reasons underlying the surge in popularity of vaping among youth are not well understood, and our work will show whether genetic factors play a role. Studying youth from both Canada and England will help us to understand whether sociocultural or regulatory environments can influence this genetic risk.